LOG IN

Woman found dead in woods may have betrayed gang members

Four people have been charged with first-degree murder in the death of woman found in a wooded area in Maryland

By

The Associated Press

December 19, 2019, 1:47 PM

2 min read

2 min read

DICKERSON, Md. --
Four people were charged with murder in the death of a woman in Maryland who police believe may have been killed over an alleged betrayal of gang members, according to court documents.

The documents filed Wednesday do not describe the alleged betrayal of the Washington, D.C.-based 18th Street gang that may have led to the slaying of Sara Gutierrez-Villatoro, 19, The Washington Post reported.

Gutierrez-Villatoro was found fatally shot in the woods in Dickerson, Maryland, on Nov. 29. Her death was ruled a homicide by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore.

Four people were arrested Tuesday in connection to the death, news outlets reported. Jonathan Rivera-Escobar, 19; Geovany Dominguez-Escobar, 24; Jordan Moreno, 21; and Rigoberto Machado, 16, are charged with first-degree murder. Machado is being charged as an adult, the reports said.

The suspects are associated with the 18th Street gang, and Dominguez-Escobar and Moreno “greenlighted” the woman's death, the Post reported, citing charging papers.

It was unclear whether the suspects had attorneys who could comment on their behalf.

The 18th Street gang has strong ties to Central America and is a rival of the MS-13 gang, The Washington Post reported.